5 ways to help post-pregnancy hair loss

I don’t know about you, but when I was pregnant my hair was lovely. It was thick and shiny, something I’ve never had the privilege of before. But then I had Isabelle… and it all went to pot. Here are 5 ways to help post-pregnancy hair loss.

Look how much hair I had!

The science behind why your hair is better in pregnancy is that the follicles don’t shed for the whole 9 months, normally they go through a cycle of shedding and growing. Boring, yes, but then that’s why you have a mass exodus in the hair department after you have a baby. I remember seeing so much fall out when I brushed my hair and weeping a little at the loss of my luscious locks.

But is there anything you can do to stop it?

In short, no.

But you can do damage limitation. Here are a few ways you can help your hair.

1. Take a post pregnancy multivitamin.

Many of you will have taken a pregnancy supplement when you were “with child”, and now isn’t the time to stop. There are specific breastfeeding supplements and post pregnancy ones depending on what takes your fancy. They just try to improve the look of the hair already there and make it look as healthy as possible. You can also opt for a “hair, skin and nails” supplement available from most supermarkets, but make sure you aren’t breastfeeding if you opt for these.

2. Blow dry your hair upside down.

This is an easy one to give you a helping hand. Blow drying your hair upside down makes the root stand up and appear thicker, also using rollers/curlers can help, but I don’t know many mums with time for that! One little point to mention would be to blow dry your hair upside down but follow the direction of your hair, if you don’t it’ll look like a frizz-ball.

3. Avocados.

Yes, you heard me right. There are many health benefits to avocados and one of them is the way it helps to improve your skin and hair. There are a few ways you can get it to work in your favour, either by eating them or creating an avocado hair mask; you can also buy avocado oil online which acts in the same way as a normal avocado would.

One thing to mention isn’t that they just benefit the quality of your hair, but they also boost hair growth and those little flyaways you get around your hairline need to grow and disappear asap!

To make a hair mask wash your hair with shampoo, then warm up a couple of teaspoons of avocado oil (just so it’s warm to touch, not boiling hot) or mash up a warm avocado with a small amount of melted coconut oil and massage it into your hair and scalp. Finish off by wrapping your hair in a warm towel and wait for a minimum of 15 minutes before washing off. It’s messy but it means the goodness soaks into your scalp and hair to maximise hair quality.

4. Coconut oil.

I did mention this briefly above, however, if you aren’t up for avocados you can create a simple hair mask with coconut oil. Warm it up and apply it the same as above and see your hair soak it up.

5. Drastic times call for drastic measures.

If you are really suffering from hair loss, sometimes a really good hair cut helps the look of thinning hair. Having it chopped into a bob can boost the appearance and also using volumising products can help. I love Tigi Bed Head Small Talk and it smells divine. If you are post-pregnancy by a few years and your hair is thinning further, some people consider cosmetic treatment. Rather than hair transplants, there is something called Advanced Tricho Pigmentation Treatment, which aims to replicate the appearance of hair follicles, much like small tattoos on the scalp.

Post-pregnancy hair loss is miserable, but one that most women can’t avoid. I hated it and two years later still have the little baby hairs making me look like a lion when I tie my hair up. But at least there are things we can do to try and make the transition back as painless as possible.

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A 20 something midwife, now a mum. I’ve worked in midwifery for years and now I’m taking the giant leap into motherhood. I blog about pregnancy, parenting and terrible TV along with any other musings that take my fancy, such as the art of eating good cake. You can’t beat good cake… HuffPost and BabyCentre UK blogger.
clare@mumsymidwife.com